New York, NY—Yeshiva University’s Board of Trustees has elected Moshael J. Straus as its next chairman. Straus, an Englewood resident and an accomplished investment executive and YU alumnus, will begin his term on July 1. He succeeds Dr. Henry Kressel, who joined the board in 2005 and has served as its chairman since 2009. Straus is a 1970 graduate of Yeshiva University High School and a 1974 graduate of Yeshiva College.
“Moshael’s judgment and counsel on a variety of major issues over these past few years have proved invaluable to the board and to me personally,” said Kressel.” I look forward to working with him as he helps lead Yeshiva University forward with excellence.”
“The chairmanship of the trustees of Yeshiva University is one of the premiere lay fiduciary Jewish positions in the world,” said YU President Richard M. Joel. “Moshael has been, is, and will be a fabulous partner in that endeavor. He has earned the respect of all his lay colleagues and the professional leadership of the University through his commitment, his analytic skills, his profound Jewish investment, and his philanthropic leadership.”
Straus was elected to the Yeshiva University Board of Trustees in 1998 and currently serves as a vice chairman. He is the chairman of the Board of Overseers of YU’s Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration and is a member of the Board of Trustees of YU-affiliated Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS). His wife Zahava ’80C is a member of the Board of Overseers at YU’s Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.
“I am extremely honored to succeed Dr. Henry Kressel, who has led the Board with extraordinary vision, responsibility, and dedication,” said Straus.
The Strauses have a long history of philanthropic giving to higher education, and communal and Jewish causes. They have supported various initiatives at Yeshiva University, including the Joseph Straus Scholarship Fund at Cardozo, the endowments of the Gwendolyn and Joseph Straus Chair in Jewish Education at Azrieli, and the Gwendolyn and Joseph Straus Chair in Talmud at RIETS.
In 2010, the Strauses established the Zahava and Moshael Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Yeshiva University. Led by Rabbi Dr. Meir Soloveichik, the Center’s mission is to develop Jewish thinkers by deepening their education in the best of Jewish tradition, by exposing them to the richness of human knowledge and insight from across the ages, and by confronting them with the great moral, philosophical, and theological questions of our age. In addition to unique courses, seminars, and fellowships, the Center hosts numerous lectures and events. Past guests have included Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, former US Senator Joseph Lieberman, Senator and then-Newark Mayor Cory Booker, columnist George Will, and NYU President John Sexton.
Straus, in addition to earning his bachelor’s degree at Yeshiva College and a JD at Fordham University School of Law, he went on to found, along with his brother Daniel, the Multicare Companies, Inc., a healthcare services company. He is currently the CEO of Ascend Capital Group International, LLC.
